Veteran shooting guard Andrew Steele, whose basketball career at Alabama appeared to be over because of concussion issues, has been cleared to return to the Crimson Tide and will join the team immediately.

Steele, a 6-4, 230-pound native of Birmingham, averaged double-figure minutes in each of his three prior seasons though he never produced more than 4 points per game. He chose to end his career last summer after experiencing severe headaches and other symptoms that were diagnosed as the product of concussion syndrome.

“It’s exciting to get the opportunity to play again, which is something I thought might never happen again,” Steele said in the school's release. “We finally got to a point where myself and my doctors were comfortable with me playing again. It’s always been my desire to play, but not at the expense of my health. Now that we’re confident I can play without comprising that, I’m excited to get back out there. The medical staff has gone above and beyond and has been really proactive with my health and I’m thankful for that.”

Concussions have taken on a heightened awareness in sports because of continued research into brain injuries and the high-profile concussion cases affecting such athletes as Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins.

It is a less common issue in basketball, but Steele had four concussions in his athletic career, including three that occurred while playing basketball, the most recent in last March's SEC Tournament.

Alabama officials said Steele had experienced no concussion-related symptoms of late and asked about the possibility of resuming his basketball career. The Tide (10-3) next play Tuesday at Georgia Tech.

"I’m excited to have Andrew back,” coach Anthony Grant said. “It’s been a long ordeal for him. Four or five months ago we met and thought his career had come to an end. During the process from the summer to now he got continually re-tested and our medical staff felt it would be possible for him to return. After having discussions with Andrew and his family, it was something that he had a desire to do. I trust our medical staff in terms of monitoring him and we’ll certainly monitor him in practice. Based on what I’ve seen, he’s more than capable of coming back and helping our team.”